Russia Claims Victory Over Islamic State in Syria
In addition to homegrown dissidents, opposition factions included known global terrorists and Islamist extremists. The extremist group still controls patches of territory in eastern Syria, where it imposes a media blackout.

Veteran of Pearl Harbor Recalls Horror of that Day
He said the attack was a "bad mistake of misjudging" America. "We are building up the military beyond what you ever thought. The president also promised them his administration would build up the military.

Health officials: Flu shot may only be 10% effective this season
You can also get the flu by touching a surface or object that has the flu virus on it and then touching your mouth, eyes or nose. While some people get flu even after receiving a flu shot, the vaccine frequently lessens the severity and duration of illness.

USA healthcare spending growth slowed in 2016
The rate of spending growth for 2016 is more in-line with the average of 4.2% growth seen between 2008 and 2015. On a per enrollee basis, private health insurance spending increased 5.1% in 2016, about the same as 2015.

News Anchor Responds To Viewer's Racist Email
Unlike when she read the email, Reed did not censor the word during her own statement. "And that's the last word". Though Reed has kept somewhat mum on the matter since the newscast ended, the same can't be said for netizens.

Apollon Limassol v Everton
His assistant Craig Shakespeare manages the team tonight as Allardyce misses out due to a medical appointment. This team is doing well in the domestic competition and at home, I think they will fancy a win over Everton .

Starbucks Now Serving Christmas Tree Frappuccinos
Instagram and Twitter have already been flooded with images and reviews of the limited drink since it hit stores this morning. The whipped cream is then drizzled with a caramel "garland" and sprinkled with candied cranberry "ornaments".

Los Angeles is up in flames and ritzy homes are ablaze

As firefighters continues to battle wildfires across Southern California, there is now another blaze, this latest one in the Bel-Air neighborhood of Los Angeles. More than 300 personnel from the Los Angeles Fire Department are on the scene and are being supported by the Los Angeles County Fire Department, LAPD and the Angeles National Forest and CalFire, officials said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference.

Along with the wind, heavy smoke and ash are making it hard for firefighters to contain the fire.

"Thousands are under mandatory evacuation orders".

According to the Los Angeles Times, authorities have ordered the evacuation of all homes between Mulholland Drive on the north, Sunset Boulevard on the south, Roscomare Road on the east and the 405 Freeway on the west.

Afternoon and evening classes were cancelled Wednesday at UCLA, which is just miles from the blaze, though isn't expected to be in the path of the fire.

Apple Pay Cash Now Available with Latest iOS UpdateBut that could be small comfort to banks concerned about creeping disintermediation by third parties as mobile commerce expands. Both the P-to-P feature and the commercial feature are necessary to make Apple's payments equation complete, Crone contends.

TRT World'sFrances Read reports from Los Angeles. Strong winds helped push the fire uphill, putting homes and residents in danger. "These are also days that show the resilience of our city". The nearby Getty Center museum shut down for the day to protect its art collection from smoke damage, it said.

The Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District closed all of its schools Wednesday and Thursday.

California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, freeing state funds and resources to assist.

Simultaneously, other wildfires are blazing in different parts of the Southland including the 65,000-acre Thomas fire in Ventura County, the 11,000-acre Creek fire near Sylmar and Lake View Terrace and the 7,000-acre Rye fire in Santa Clarita area, ABC7reported.

California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency over the area Tuesday, announcing: "This fire is very unsafe and spreading rapidly".